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Top Five Adam Young Scores

I’ve been planning this post for way too long and I still don’t know how to rank these scores. I’m not exaggerating when I say that every single score is good. I would be lying if I said that every score was a pleasure to listen to, because some of the scores are incredibly sad and have moved me immensely. However, I think that’s a sign of a good film score. A film score is created to enhance your movie-watching experience, but more than that they are made to move you emotionally, create an atmosphere, and enhance the story. Even in Adam’s scores, which obviously don’t belong to actual movies, achieve this.

I want to note that this “ranking” is only my opinion. I have not put them in best to worst order, because I don’t think I can do that objectively. Also, that would be extremely difficult. I really do think that every one of these scores are well done. They have each moved me in their own way. There isn’t a single one that I won’t re-listen to many times over.

#5: Voyager 1 –

I didn’t know for a while whether or not this score would be on my top five list. I started out loving this score completely because it sounds so cool. Then I thought, “But what if my way of ranking isn’t very good. What if there is a better way and this score is actually very good.” The more I thought about it the more unsure I became of how to rank the scores. I started switching things around, and even considered changing my pick for number 1. Then, I listened to this score again. It is so chill and beautiful and creates a picture in my mind of the beauty of space. That’s when I decided, “To heck with it. I love this score.” And here we are.

#4: Miracle in the Andes –

Beautiful score. I didn’t like this one at first, because it came right after Omaha. Both scores were sad and I wasn’t in the mood to be sad. Now that I listen to it again it has moved up on my list. The first few tracks are so subtle and yet speak volumes. They tell the story of the crash perfectly with just the right amount of tension and build up. The next few tracks set up the scene of the crash so that I could see it in my mind’s eye. The concluding tracks brought back the story and concluded it perfectly.

#3:The Endurance –

This one has the aesthetics down perfectly. It has the perfect oceany sailing feeling and the accordion! I love this score. It’s funny, because when I listen to this I think, “Ah, classic Adam Young score,” it doesn’t even make sense, but that’s what this is. There were some things that, by the time Endurance came out I was used to hearing in his scores. There are certain elements, a certain style that he’s developed.

This score is one that, again, blends storytelling with aesthetics. It’s a quality that I really admire in the scores. Not all of them do it, but the ones that do are the ones I enjoy the most. This score is definitely one that I will be returning to again and again.

#2: The Ascent of Everest –

This album is so chill. The themes are so icy. Listening to it really transports me to Mount Everest. After watching the heartbreaking movie Everest , I have listening to this with a whole new appreciation and I can see the setting even better. The Summit, the last track on the score, has a feeling of accomplishment embedded into it. It’s big and swelling and celebratory and glorious. The setting that it created in my mind, the use of electronic guitar, and the power of the score swept me in kept me hooked from the first song to the last. This is a score that I frequently keep on repeat.

#1: Corduroy Road –

The easiest decision I made by far for this list. Corduroy Road is a score that has moved me many times over. It is a gem of an album. I have been lulled to sleep by these tracks many times. They have inspired my writing. They make me want to create my own music.

This album puts me in my happy place, but it also does a good job of painting a picture of the south during the Civil War. It think it’s interesting that both Corduroy Road and Omaha Beach are centered around a war, but CR is so calm and peaceful while OB is not. I feel like, with Corduroy, we are hearing the bits in between the fighting. We’re hearing about the camping, the journeying, the aesthetics. With Omaha, there’s not any time to learn about the aesthetics, because everything is so fast-paced like the real event was.

I didn’t rank the other scores because, honestly, I couldn’t decide how to rank them. I loved the one I had in last place so much that I wanted to move it up, but the problem was that I loved all the other ones as well. So, I decided to just rank my top five. And even these are in constant flux.

I want to say again that I love these scores. Each of them have taken me on a journey to a time and place I’ve never been. They’ve told me stories I’ve never heard before. I’ve learned a lot this year, through Adam’s scores, about how to tell a good story without any words at all. 🙂